Last Thursday we launched our new charity, the Misfit Foundation in Islington, North London. The term “launch” perhaps gives the wrong impression. Actually we held a party and invited our friends and told them what we were doing. This seemed to go down very well although the copious amounts of liquid refreshment provided (thanks to … Continue reading A new charity is born
Author: Tobin Aldrich
A better deal for donors
I've been working for charities for over twenty years, a sobering thought. I've worked for some great charities and done some fantastic fundraising. And some that's been less fantastic but we'll skip quickly over that. Overall, it's been really good. But what's been bothering me for much of this time has been that I haven't … Continue reading A better deal for donors
Stay tuned
A few friends and myself have been busy for the last couple of months. We're working on a new project. A new charity in fact. On Thursday 12 February we will be launching our new charity. And we will preview our first project. Which will be....interesting What we are aiming to achieve is ambitious enough. The charity … Continue reading Stay tuned
Coach for hire
One of the things that has struck me as an old fundraising director turned newly minted consultant is what charities spend their fundraising budget on. Overall , a lot of money goes to agencies and consultants of all kinds. Mostly to develop specific activities and campaigns but also to provide ideas and insight. A typical medium … Continue reading Coach for hire
The fundraising staffing crisis
Ask any head of fundraising what their biggest challenges are and it's a pretty good bet that first or second on their list will be the ability to recruit or retain the right people. Good fundraisers are at an absolute premium and a huge number of non-profits are failing to deliver their missions as effectively … Continue reading The fundraising staffing crisis
Fundraising new year’s resolutions
I have to admit I've never been a great one for New Year's resolutions. Never quite saw why an arbitrary date would suddenly make you behave in a better or more productive way. But really it's as good a reason as any to review how things are going and maybe introduce a few improvements. I … Continue reading Fundraising new year’s resolutions
Open for business
Here's a complete bombshell..I'm going to be a fundraising consultant. Yes, I knew you'd be astonished….. Oh well then, yes of course it was inevitable. And the day has finally come. Deciding what to call the consultancy was a real challenge. So I hired branding consultant who carried out a six month multi-stakeholder exercise including … Continue reading Open for business
New challenges
An update from me…I will be leaving Sightsavers on 30 November 2014. I've greatly enjoyed working at this organisation and very proud of all that we have achieved together. In particular the new million Miracles campaign is really exciting. Sightsavers is a great organisation with a tremendous cause and a fabulous fundraising proposition. I'm sure … Continue reading New challenges
Direct mail isn’t dying but it’s changing
There's nothing more tedious than the arguments you sometimes get into about which types or channels of fundraising are the most effective. The "my one is better than your one" species of debate seldom leads to a great deal of enlightenment (indeed it is I think one of the Seven Myths of Fundraising). The most … Continue reading Direct mail isn’t dying but it’s changing
Disasters and fundraising
The news that the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) have launched an appeal for the Ebola crisis in West Africa is probably causing quite a bit of mixed feelings for fundraisers in the UK. Of course we all support our colleagues in the DEC in their efforts to raise as much money as possible to help … Continue reading Disasters and fundraising
Fundraising Fundamentals 